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Training Sites

Longitudinal Treatment Experiences

• Akoma Counseling Service â€“ Akoma Counseling Service is a private psychotherapy practice in downtown Decatur. The agency serves patients and families across the socioeconomic spectrum. Fellows’ experience at this site provides a multidisciplinary, longitudinal outpatient psychotherapy experience.  There is on-site group supervision by a licensed clinical psychologist, as well as additional psychotherapy supervision by social workers and psychologists. Fellows start to pick up longitudinal psychotherapy patients during the fall of their first year and continue this experience throughout their second year.

• Department of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) â€“ ´óÏó´«Ã½ School of Medicine faculty provide both in-person and telepsychiatry services for children and adolescents detained in Georgia Juvenile Justice facilities. Fellows rotate at this location during their second year. This experience provides an opportunity to not only provide care to an underserved population, but also to learn about the juvenile justice system and the social determinants of health that increase the risk for juvenile justice system involvement.

• Families First – Families are private, non-profit agencies with a broad array of services for children and families. Locations include clinics, schools, group homes and clubhouses. The organization have a long track record of treating underserved children and has mandatory trainings for all of its staff regarding trauma-informed care. During their first year, our fellows have a longitudinal psychopharmacology experience there. During their second year, fellows work with an attending child psychiatrist and general psychiatry residents. Thhis experience provides an opportunity for further refinement of clinical skills while also allowing fellows to develop their supervisory and teaching skills.

• ´óÏó´«Ã½ Healthcare (MHC) at East Point  â€“ A first, MSM CAP Fellowship is beginning its own clinic at MHC East Point location. The clinic will provide psychotherapy and psychopharmacology for children and families. During their first year, our fellows have a longitudinal psychopharmacology experience and begin there psychotherapy experience. There is also specialized clinics including Forensics evaluations in a partnership with Fulton County Judicial System.

• Whitefoord School Based Health Clinic â€“ Whitefoord School Based Health Clinic is a non-profit agency that is a major safety net mental healthcare provider for children and families in the Atlanta Metro Area. Fellows rotate at this location for a longitudinal outpatient psychopharmacology experience during their second year. This experience provides an opportunity to further develop and solidify outpatient treatment mental health skills in a multidisciplinary community psychiatry setting.

Acute Treatment Rotations

• Hillside â€“ Hillside is an in-town Atlanta private residential treatment facility for children and adolescents. This facility uses Dialectical Behavioral Therapy as its core therapeutic approach. The youth treated there are a largely middle and upper middle-class population with many privately insured or self-paid patients. Fellows are immersed in the DBT treatment model while on their rotation and also have opportunities to attend DBT trainings for clinicians. Fellows are a key part of team-based, multidisciplinary treatment along with clinicians providing combined therapeutic and educational programs. This is a first-year rotation.

• Laurel Heights â€“ Laurel Heights is an in-town Atlanta residential treatment facility for children and adolescents. This facility is unique with having a dedicated acute unit for individuals with neurodevelopmental disabilities. Laurel Heights serves a diverse patient population, taking individuals with private and public insurance. Fellows are a key part of team-based, multidisciplinary treatment. This is a first year rotation.

• Tanner at Willowbrooke â€“ Tanner is a multi-site mental health agency based in Douglas County. Willowbrooke is a private psychiatric system with a range of services including acute child and adolescent psychiatry services. It serves a diverse patient population racially and socioeconomically, with many families from rural Georgia. Fellows are a key part of team-based, multidisciplinary treatment on a general inpatient psychiatry unit. This site also provides them with medical student teaching opportunities.

Consultation and Integrated Care

• Hughes Spalding Pediatric Primary Care Continuity Clinic – This is an urban, hospital-based primary care clinic with an emphasis on providing care to under-served and minority populations. Second year fellows have both teaching and clinical consultation duties. Teaching experiences include brief prepared presentations for the ´óÏó´«Ã½ School of Medicine pediatrics fellows regarding mental health topics as well as case-based teaching. Consultation duties include outpatient consultation for patients served in the ´óÏó´«Ã½ School of Medicine pediatric resident continuity clinic. This experience also provides an opportunity for fellows to gain firsthand knowledge about the pediatric primary care setting/system and to observe typical child development. In addition, the 2nd year Fellows, work in the Autism Clinic at Hughes Spaulding where they participate in a multidisciplinary team to evaluate and develop a plans for individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders. They are able to observe firsthand, standard evaluations and further learn about the systems of care and resources available for individuals and families with disabilities.

• Grady Memorial Hospital/Infectious Disease Program (IDP) â€“ This clinic is a medical specialty outpatient clinic within a large community hospital system. The patient population receives treatment for HIV along with interventions for mental health and social matters within the same clinical setting. Second year fellows do outpatient integrated care work here as part of a multidisciplinary team. In addition to providing direct patient care, fellows may provide consultations on patients for whom they will not serve as the primary clinician, with an emphasis on treatment planning and referral to the most appropriate community mental health and psychosocial resources.

• School Based Health Center at KIPP Vision Primary School – This center provides primary care, case management and mental health services on the campus of an Atlanta charter school serving grades K-4. Second year fellows provide outpatient integrated care services here as part of a multidisciplinary team. They provide Trauma Focused CBT for select clinic patients. They also consult on patients for whom they will not serve as the primary clinician, with an emphasis on treatment planning and referral to the most appropriate community mental health and psychosocial resources through collaboration with the primary care provider and clinic social worker. 

• Inpatient Consult at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta Arthur M. Blank – Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA) is one of the largest children’s hospitals in the country and is the site of the fellows’ inpatient consult rotation. Second year fellows work as part of an interdisciplinary team that may include medical students, general psychiatry fellows, and Nurse Practitioners. The hospital includes an Emergency Department and an array of medical subspeciality services. Fellows learn diagnostic and management principles in an inpatient consult environment. They also observe psychological manifestations of medical conditions. Emphasis will be placed on diagnostic, consultation and interdisciplinary collaboration skills.  

Specialty Rotations

• Children's Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA) at Arthur M. Blank – Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta is one of the largest children’s hospitals in the country and is the site of the fellows’ neurology rotation. This rotation will include experience in both inpatient and outpatient settings and, in addition to general child neurology, will include exposure to more specialized areas of the discipline such as pediatric epilepsy, neuromuscular disease, and neurodegenerative disorders in childhood. Residents will learn diagnostic and management principles for common neurological conditions in children. Emphasis will be placed on fundamental issues of developmental neurobiology as they apply uniquely to normal/abnormal neurodevelopment in children.

• Barton Child Law and Policy Center – The Barton Law and Policy Center is part of the Emory Law school. CAP second year fellows are there for two rotations, one for legal consult and the other for advocacy. The legal consult rotation involves working with children, adolescents and families who are involved in the Department of Juvenile Justice. The child fellows work with the Barton Center’s Juvenile Defender Clinic Director and Law Professor Randee Waldman, law students and the supervising faculty, Dr. Sarah Vinson. Rotation activities may include forensic consultation in manifestation hearings related to schools, juvenile delinquency court proceedings, or individualized educational plan meetings. The advocacy rotation involves working with lobbyists, physician advocates, nonprofit advocacy organizations, and state legislators to design and advance policies impacting children, adolescents, and families. During this aspect of the rotation, the fellows work with the Center’s Director Law Professor Melissa Carter.

• Georgia Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities(GaLEND) – is a 1 year interdisciplinary training experience that prepares individuals to become leaders that champion individuals with disabilities. The program is a part of the Center for Leadership in Disability at Georgia State University. Over the academic year, 2nd year Fellows will participate in a variety of activities including courses, educational experiences, academic and advocacy projects, and community experiences.

• Veritas Collaborative – This facility provides outpatient services for children, adolescents, and young adults with known or suspected eating disorders or disordered eating. Veritas offers multidisciplinary evaluations and treatment, including medical, psychiatric, dietetic, and psychotherapeutic care. First year fellows have the opportunity to observe medical, psychological, and dietary assessments of patients with eating disorders; participate in psychiatric evaluations; and to observe multidisciplinary team meetings determining level of care and recommended services.

• The Insight Program – This program has provided substance use disorder treatment for teens and young adults since 1987. Its services are delivered through the Enthusiastic Sobriety philosophy, which is founded in a recognition that making sobriety attractive to teens and young adults is challenging. Insight has been successful in creating a program that reaches young people in a way that is inviting, fun and tailored to the developmental needs of teens. The Insight Program offers a number of services including intensive outpatient substance abuse treatment, outpatient substance abuse treatment, individual counseling, family counseling, support group meetings, parent support groups, and sober social functions. First year fellows participate in the psychiatric treatment of the program’s participants and also observe group treatment.

School Rotations

• Sheltering Arms â€“ Sheltering Arms is the longest-established and one of the largest nonprofit early childhood education organizations in Georgia, providing high-quality early education, child care and comprehensive family support services since 1888. On average, children attending Sheltering Arms score in the 90^th percentile for language and literacy, exceeding developmental milestones for kindergarten readiness. Second year fellows serve as mental health consultants to school staff regarding the students and families served. They also create and provide psychoeducational programming and for staff and parents.

• KIPP Ways Academy – This is an urban charter school that serves over 90% African-American students from at-risk communities. This school is part of a group of charter schools that has distinguished itself as one with high academic expectations and intensive educational programming such as extended hours and Saturday school. This will provide a learning opportunity to see how a school adapts to the needs and challenges of its student population in furtherance of their learning and development.

Elective Rotations

• Community Elective, Advocacy Elective, Clinical Elective, Academic Elective – Fellows have protected semi-structured time with faculty support and guidance to explore areas of professional interest. Elective time is part of both the 1^st and 2^nd year experience.